With huge
thanks to Will Anderson, Senior Fire Inspector, Whatcom County, we enjoyed an
informative and provocative session on September 3, 2013.
Fire and
water can be considered the most damaging of natural resources to assets owned
by common interest associations and their investors. Water is insidious and not
always visible immediately. Fire, however, is unmistakable and requires
immediate attention.
As owners of
residences in common interest communities — and of commercial spaces — we owe a
higher obligation to our community to be vigilant when it comes to fire. Common
sense dictates that associations lead smoke detector testing and regular battery
replacement efforts. As well, inspections of gas appliances, including gas fireplaces.
Educating
residents about fire, and smoke detectors in particular, is also key. One
resident who set off smoke detectors in her unit while cooking simply smacked
the detector with a broom handle, thus knocking it off the ceiling and
disabling it, then continued to live there with her family — and her neighbors —
essentially smoke-detector-less.
Boards who
lack this sense of leadership can be said to fail their communities, based on
the state law that requires boards to protect association assets and the
community.
Here then, details from our session.
Thirteen Separate Fire Departments in Whatcom County
Will
reported that there are 13 fire departments in Whatcom County, with staffing
vagaries differing among those located on the ‘east side’ and the ‘west side’
of the county. What this means is that every association is charged with
calling their local fire department and working with their local authority to
assure that the association’s assets are known, visible, locate-able and available
to the department as required, in order to respond to a fire.
Forty-Three Separate Water Districts in Whatcom County
Contact your
local water district to verify that hydrants are flushed regularly and that
there is access to water within a reasonable distance from your property. There
are some small districts with access to only well water. You can expedite
putting out a fire if you know in advance that it is necessary for the fire
department to haul the water to the event.
Exteriors
You know the
layout of your buildings, roadways and property: Firemen do not. When you see
firemen ‘standing around’ in front of a fire, often they are deciding as best
as they can how to get in, how to get out, how to address the fire, how to
ascertain all the data points necessary in order to fight a fire, save lives
and not die themselves. That’s dramatic, but it’s true.
One option
for an association is to prepare a pre-fire plan. This plan includes an overhead
view of each floor showing all exits, for example. In addition, you can
document:
· Sprinkler system schematics — tanks, valves.
· Fire hydrant locations.
· Master key boxes, if any.
· Gate codes, if any.
Then, on the
property, label every building with visible numbers that can be read at night.
Identify unit numbers, too. There can be blue road reflectors embedded in front
of hydrants. Lacking the
details above about the property, you may lose a gate, front doors and so forth
— which you’d prefer to losing lives.
Be mindful
of where you stow your garbage, including recycle-able materials. Arsonists prefer
to find easy targets: locations where the only equipment they need to bring to
satisfy their need is a match. Cardboard recycle and plastic recycle materials
are especially interesting to arsonists. Stow them away from buildings and so
that they are not easily accessible.
Smokers who
pitch butts into planters in front of the exit/entry door, or into the beauty
bark around the building cause fires. Offer exterior ash trays that smother
cigarette butts, and service them regularly. Move beauty bark a foot away from
buildings, and insert stones in the bare patches.
If your tree
branches droop lower than about 10 feet from bushes, or other flammable material,
this means that fire can travel up through trees, then jump to other trees. You’ve
seen in forest fires, how quickly and with enormous devastation how fires
travel through tree tops. Prune your low-hanging branches.
Where
possible, give your building a three-foot fire-break distance between combustibles
and the building.
If your
locale permits fireworks, as much fun as they may be, they are also a major
fire hazard. Be prepared to offer water-filled buckets to revelers, and watch
for flying, burning matter landing on roofs. In Whatcom County during 2012,
millions of dollars’ worth of real estate was burned up by fireworks. Check
your local municipality for fireworks periods and publish them to your
residents.
If you use surveillance
equipment, buy the best that the association can afford. Test it to confirm
that the video results are usable.
Interiors
Smoking,
cooking and candles are the primary fire starters in residences. Also be aware
of using gas appliances and electricity.
Smoking
Smoking may
not be allowed in common areas in your community. But unless your community is
a non-smoking community, people will smoke within the homes. Most smoking-based
fires are started by smokers who smoke in bed. Will explained that our modern
furniture materials are significantly more combustible than were those used in
homes 50 years ago. Today, you may have up to one full minute to evacuate a
burning room: 50 years ago, you had several minutes — simply based on the combustible
nature of the furnishings.
Cooking
Will’s
Number One guideline is this: Never leave your cooking fires unattended. When,
however, one occurs, if it is small enough, wet a towel, wring it out, expand
it and smother the fire. This action takes courage, quick thinking and common
sense. Never use powder — it may combust. Never use water — that may spread the
fuel.
Even
electric appliances can start fires. Keep your eyes open for recalls — check
out the history of that electric appliance you bought at a garage sale.
No amount of
heroic action is worth your life. When the fire is out of control, get out.
Candles
Be vigilant
in your use of candles. If you must use them, put a substantial base under any glass
container, so that if it breaks because of the heat, the wax and flame won’t
spread onto the furniture or floor. A ceramic bowl is suggested, one large
enough to contain the liquid in the candle mass.
Gas
Appliances
Other
elements include gas appliances, including gas fireplaces. Bring in inspectors
and service personnel on a regular basis, to inspect and service interior gas
equipment. Ask your association to mandate these services and inspections and
add the cost to the budget. Look at the vent for the fireplace on the exterior.
Is there a hood that deflects the heat away from the building? If not, this
heat can dry out the wood and thus lower its ignition point.
Electricity
Don’t use electric
extension cords. Don’t use plug multipliers. Throw them away. Their
manufacturing standards are not adequate to prevent fires. Use power strips
instead, those with true breaker-switch capability. When you feel power cords
that are hot or warm, those are signals that there is fire potential there. You
can use two power strips in one electrical outlet with two fixtures. No more.
You can detect excess heat in electrical outlets if the colour of the outlet is
brown or black. This may signal electric overload inside the walls.
Be aware
that if Jacob, the handyman, who is not licensed, bonded and insured, inspects
or services electric or gas equipment in your unit — or performs gas or electric
work for you, your insurance may not cover any fire damage that occurs.
Fire
Extinguishers
Finally, if
you keep a fire extinguisher, preferably one coded 2-A: 10-B:C. They are
inexpensive, not rechargeable and best kept if everyone in the home knows how
to use one. Take a class. Mount it on the wall so that moisture does not
collect under it and compromise its effectiveness. Keep it up to date.
Summary
In
preparation for this session, we asked you to view a video showing a propane
barbeque fire that took place in Seattle in June 2012. The video lasts six
minutes, from the time the videographer could be heard reporting the fire to
the 9-1-1 operator to the time the firemen extinguished the flames.
In our
county — one of the largest In Washington — we can expect at best an average of
ten minutes travel time for the firemen to travel from where they are to the
event. In high-density, multi-family housing, any fire will affect more than
one unit.
Action
Take the
time to discuss this matter within your community. As a board member, you can
use this checklist to elevate the protection you offer to your association,
which is your responsibility:
· How does our local water district service fire hydrants near us?
· Are our stand pipes marked?
· Do we have a sprinkler system schematic showing tanks, valves, etc.?
· Does the local fire department have access to our master key box?
· Does the local fire department have our gate code? Over-ride or emergency code?
· How visible are our address numbers and unit numbers at night?
· How visible are the nearest fire hydrant markers at night?
· How accessible are our buildings through alleys, side roads or main road for fire trucks?
· Can we pass an inspection of flammable elements around our buildings?
· How do we engage revelers during fireworks periods, and otherwise be vigilant during these times?
· What is the status of our surveillance equipment, who tested it last, who is responsible for its maintenance?
· How and how often do we educate residents about fire potential in units?
· What action do we take as a board to address smoke detector maintenance, gas fireplace maintenance and so forth?
Please feel free to share this post with friends and family: the tips are excellent and can save lives.
